News Round-Up
27 April 2024
by Toby Young
The Green Agenda Will Lead to Civil War
26 April 2024
by Ben Pile
Nicola Sturgeon says Scottish children will be vaccinated "as quickly as possible" if the JCVI approves the vaccination of children aged 12 and over. Planning for a child vaccine roll-out has started already.
The lifting of lockdown restrictions has been halted in much of Scotland because of the Indian Covid variant, but there is “cautious optimism” that the final step of England's roadmap could go ahead as planned.
Lockdown restrictions are set to be partially eased in Scotland next week, but the Health Secretary says that stricter rules are likely to remain in parts of the country where the number of positive tests is increasing.
Prof Devi Sridhar, who advises the Scottish Government on Covid, has U-turned on the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine against variants (she now believes it works), and says "we must move away from harsh lockdowns".
Scotland's Supreme Leader, Nic Sturge-On, has announced that the lockdown rules will remain in force in Glasgow and Moray after Monday while restrictions are eased in the rest of Scotland.
Restrictions on meeting both indoors and outdoors will be partially eased across most of Scotland on Monday – but it's bad news if you live in Moray, where current restrictions are expected to remain in place.
There is “every reason for optimism” in Scotland because of its vaccine rollout, according to Nicola Sturgeon, as the next step of the country’s exit from lockdown has been brought forward.
Scotland has recorded its lowest March death rate since 2014. The rate was also among the lowest in fifty years, but the country's National Clinical Director insists it is too soon to lift lockdown.
The Scottish Government acted unlawfully in closing churches under coronavirus regulations, the Court of Sessions has ruled – just two days before communal worship is due to resume.
Lockdown has caused a "significant backlog of criminal cases" in Scotland which will not be cleared until at least 2025. The “downstream impacts” of this on community justice services and prisons are expected to be dire.
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